Coconut Kiwi Oatmeal

Coconut butter is THE most luxurious ingredient in the entire world. More luxurious than pomegranates. More luxurious than pistachios. More luxurious than dark chocolate.

(Let me get one thing straight: coconut butter is NOT better than peanut butter. However, because coconut butter is a rarity for me, it is more exciting and special. But in the end...peanut butter FTW!)

Kiwi, Green Apple, and Pistachio Oatmeal

Last week, I talked about how crazy my life was as a teacher. I'm happy to announce that I'm slowly getting my "ish" together. I enjoyed a lovely 15 hours grading essays over the weekend (yippee), but besides that, I'm feeling things slowing down.

Anyway, this recipe features an odd assortment of ingredients. Essentially, I was inspired by green. I can't remember how this recipe started in my imagination, but I simply kept adding on to it with more green things. It continued to morph as it went through the process. Even when I first made it, I decided to add lemon extract at the last second. No regrets--the touch of citrus made these ingredients dance. Lime juice might be pleasant, too.

Strawberry Kiwi Oatmeal

I don’t remember much from elementary school—especially anything of importance. However, I easily recall the Ocean Spray vending machine outside the cafeteria. At a certain point in the day (after afternoon recess, I think?), we were allowed to walk by ourselves to the vending machine and put in 50 cents to get a can of Ocean Spray juice.

There were the standard options, like orange, apple, and grape, but my favorite was strawberry kiwi. Now, I shudder at the thought of all this juice and its effect on my beautiful teeth, but I definitely enjoyed it back then.

Lemon and Kiwi Oatmeal

I hope nobody is bored of my lemon recipes! This will be the last one for a while, I promise. And trust me, this one is a fabulous one to finish with. It's bright, fruity, and energizing! I made this for dinner on a beautifully sunny day (didn't need a jacket!), and I savored every golden spoonful while lounging on my wood floor next to an open window. Oh, spring! I love thee.

I resent the idea that oatmeal is only a "winter food." Boo on that! If you haven't noticed, I enjoy oatmeal year-round.  The heat doesn't bother me because I'm usually cold in the mornings, regardless of the season. Of course, I could always prepare refrigerator oats instead...but I rarely eat cold oatmeal anyway. As I've mentioned before, I always heat up my overnight oats before eating them. There is just something so comforting about warm porridge!

Fruit-on-the-Bottom Oatmeal

I'll be honest right from the start: I have never had (nor do I have the desire to try) fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt. First of all, it's not available in nondairy varieties, so that's an obvious deterrent. Moreso, the "fruit" on the bottom has been heavily processed and coated with sickeningly sweet high fructose corn syrup. Um, no.

Like most of my recipes, I've been eager to try this one for a while. It required me to have yogurt on hand, which I usually lack. Whenever I have it, I end up demolishing it before I can even attempt this or the other yogurt-demanding recipes.

Berry Kiwi Oatmeal

My two weeks of professional development training are over! Next time I return to the school, it will be with actual students. Hurray!

This also means summer is coming to an end, and I'm on a frantic mission to enjoy all the summer fruits while they're still around. With a bowl of oatmeal, naturally. :)

Loaded Banana Oatmeal

Do you ever have trouble deciding which kind of oatmeal to make in the morning because you kind of just want everything??

If so, this one's for YOU. It's like an Everything Bagel, without the garlic.

Normally, when we hear the word "loaded," we think of heart attacks like loaded chili or loaded baked potatoes, which usually feature bacon, sour cream, and junk food like "Funyuns." No, thanks.

THIS loaded concoction can be as healthy (or unhealthy) as you like. For a healthier route, look for toppings like fresh fruit, dried fruit, peanut butter, puffed rice, any type of yogurt, nuts, raw chia or hemp seed, banana butter, sunflower or pumpkin seeds, shredded coconut, granola, or more sliced banana. You could also add maple syrup or honey on top.

Fruity Tea-Steeped Oatmeal with Kiwi

I'm extremely picky about my teas. If it's weak and boring, get it out of my sight. However, if it's too strong and the flavors are super intense, I'm not a fan of that, either.

This makes purchasing new teas extremely risky. They come in packs of twenty, so if I end up not liking it--too bad! I still have nineteen more. Luckily, I've developed ways to use up the teas I don't like.